Biogenesis of post-translationally modified peptide signals for plant reproductive development

Post-translationally modified peptides (PMPs) are important regulators of plant growth and development. They are derived from larger inactive precursors by post-translational modifica-tion (PTM) and proteolytic processing to result in the bioactive peptide signals. We discuss how and why these modifications contribute to the bioactivity of inflorescence deficient in abscission (IDA), phytosulfokine (PSK), and peptides of the Casparian strip integrity factor (CIF) family, as signaling mol-ecules during reproductive development. The emerging picture suggests that PTMs evolved to increase the specificity of interaction of PMPs with cognate receptors and of PMP pre-cursors with processing proteases. Cleavage sites in PMP precursors are recognized by subtilases (SBTs) in a highly specific manner. SBT-mediated processing results in the acti-vation of PMP signals regulating stress-induced flower drop, the formation of the embryonic cuticle, and pollen development.

Automated summary

This study discusses the importance of post-translationally modified peptides (PMPs) in regulating plant growth and development. The study suggests that these modifications increase the specificity of peptide signals interacting with receptors and processing proteases.